Chris
Dear friends and family of Chris and Sara,
The following is the story of the birth of Kevin John Alexander, a happy and healthy baby boy. He was born to Christopher Alexander and Sara Bauer on Sunday, February 6th, at 4:17am. He was 8lbs, 8ozs and 21" at birth.
This e-mail is being sent by a former College roommate of Chris' (Justin Reed) to save the new parents much needed time in the early days. We also want to let you know that there is a Web Site set up for Kevin. Currently it holds only a picture of his parents, Chris and Sara, taken in early-May of 1999. By Feb 20th, there will be two dozen photos of Chris, Sara, and Kevin for you to access from anywhere, 24hrs a day. A reminder e-mail will be sent out once the site is up and fully functional:
http://www.geocities.com/KevinNet2000
Also, please send your words of wisdom, wishes of congratulation, etc., to the e-mail accounts of the new and very proud parents:
[email protected]
[email protected]
The rest of this e-mail comes directly from Chris.
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Well, I've got a son now. Kevin John Alexander was born at 4:17am, Sunday morning (2/6/00). He is absolutely beautiful. Sara and the baby are both doing very well.
I guess I will give you the summarized version of the past few days events. Saturday evening we went out to dinner (Applebee's). Sara had been feeling just the normal discomfort and contractions that women feel for the last couple months before delivery, so we weren't expecting anything to happen that night. However, she went to the bathroom before we left the restaurant and, without getting too graphic, there was some mucus and blood mixed in with her urine (this is normal, and we knew not to be concerned). Also, Sara noticed that the contractions were starting to get a little stronger and she had more lower back pain than normal. So we had a sense that things might be accelerating. We left the restaurant (mid-dessert - I didn't get to finish my milkshake) and went home.
We called the doctor and she advised us to continue timing the contractions and wait until the contractions were strong enough to the point where Sara was unable to talk through them, and then call back. This was about 9:00pm or so. So I timed her contractions for a while. They got stronger, longer, and closer together, so we knew it was getting closer. Sara tried to lie down and relax (this period of labor - before going to the hospital - can last for many hours in some women; sometimes up to 6 or 8 hours) and get some sleep. Yet the contractions were getting very painful by about 11:00pm, so I called the doctor back and updated her on Sara's condition. She listened to Sara talking on the phone during a contraction (about a minute long at this point) and could tell she was ready to come to the hospital. We grabbed the hospital bag (pre-packed) and headed to the hospital. I should add an interesting meteorological note at this point. It had started snowing while we were at the restaurant almost exactly when Sara first noticed that she was feeling different.
Anyway, by the time we left for the hospital it was snowing pretty heavily and the roads were a mess. We got to the hospital (just up the street from Sara's apartment) with no problem and we were admitted and given a room on the labor and delivery floor. The first thing they checked was how dilated her cervix was. The deal with this is that you start at 1 centimeter at the beginning of labor and have to be up to 10cm dilated before you are ready to push the baby through. Sara was about 4-5 cm at this point, so she was well on her way. The next two or three hours the contractions grew more painful. Sara would probably say that is an understatement. It was tough to see her in such pain. They say it is like no pain you can imagine unless you have experienced it, and having watched Sara and helped her through, I definitely believe that.
By about three or so, Sara was 8-9 cm dilated and moving towards delivery. The nurses on the labor and delivery floor were absolutely wonderful. They really did a great job of reassuring us and helping Sara along. Also, they were amazed by Sara's toughness and determination. We decided beforehand to try to go through it w/out pain medication, with the understanding that if it was too much to handle, Sara would take something to help her stand the pain. And she went through it all (and incredible pain and discomfort) without taking anything. Also, the nurses couldn't believe that a woman of Sara's size could push out such a big baby (8lbs. 8 oz., 21 "). They were genuinely impressed. Not only by this, but generally by how well she adjusted to the contractions and the pain of pushing during delivery. During delivery, the mother has to push every time the contractions come. It hurts incredibly and the nurse and doctor generally have to really prod the mother to push at this time, because it is more comfortable to let the contraction fade w/out pushing. But Sara not only pushed, but was getting 4 or 5 pushes in per contraction, where the doctor usually really has to work with the mother to get two or three. Clearly Sara was a trooper.
Rewinding a bit, my perspective of the birth was just unbelievable. That's the only word. Watching a little tiny spot of a baby's head slowly grow larger and emerge from Sara's body with each push was so amazing and exciting.
The pushing itself probably lasted forty five minutes or so. Kevin John Alexander was born at 4:17am. I cut the umbilical cord, and they quickly cleaned him off and brought him up to Sara's chest. The nurses and doctors were great. They did the quick initial examinations for a few minutes, and then left us to be alone with him for 30 minutes or so, checking in every few minutes. I just can't explain what it was like. You aren't really prepared for that moment when you see him and realize what has just happened. It was wonderful. By about 5:45am we were moved to our room on the maternity floor, where we have been since then. The baby is very content, and doesn't cry much, except when hungry.
Sara and I haven't slept much since then and are very very wiped out. There is any endless parade of nurses, doctors. and Kevin wakes up at unpredictable hours needing to eat or have a diaper changed. So we are adjusting to this new schedule. Everything really has gone remarkably well. He is healthy and happy. Sara is also doing well, albeit completely exhausted. We are both very excited to bring him home this afternoon.
Feel free to pass on whatever selection of the above info you choose to the folks on the email list. Also tell them to feel free to call or e-mail. It won't be a bother - we both really appreciate hearing from friends and are excited to share this event with everyone.
Talk to you later,
Chris